WIMBLEDON, England -- Justine Henin sweated a bit Wednesday at sunny Wimbledon, and not just because of the warm weather.
The seven-time Grand Slam champion twice was broken serving for the match, then regrouped and advanced to the third round by beating Kristina Barrois 6-3, 7-5.
Playing first on cozy Court 2, Henin built leads of 4-1 in the first set and 5-1 in the second. Serving for the win at 5-2, she double-faulted on consecutive points and lost the game, then lost serve again for 5-all.
But Henin broke back and served out the victory at love. She exhaled in relief after winning the final point against the German.
"I was sometimes too much in a rush to finish, probably because she gave up at that time and my intensity really dropped down," Henin said. "I had a good reaction to the situation."
Fellow Belgian Kim Clijsters also advanced, beating Karolina Sprem 6-3, 6-2. Clijsters and Henin are both back at Wimbledon after coming out of retirement, and they could meet in the fourth round.
Five-time champion Venus Williams advanced by beating Ekaterina Makarova 6-0, 6-4.
Playing on Centre Court, Williams committed just 10 unforced errors and lost only 11 points on her serve. She is seeded second behind her sister Serena, who won when they met in last year's final.
Venus Williams improved her career grass-court record to 70-10.
Three seeded women lost: No. 13 Shahar Peer, No. 30 Yaroslava Shvedova and No. 33 Melanie Oudin.
Peer was eliminated by Angelique Kerber 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Regina Kulikova beat Shvedova 6-2, 6-4. Oudin, who made a big splash by reaching the fourth round last year at age 17, lost to Jarmila Groth 6-4, 6-3.
No. 11 Marion Bartoli advanced with a walkover against Petra Martic.
Umbrellas were out -- not for rain, but as shields from the sun on the hottest day of the tournament. With temperatures heading into the low 80s, the All England Club's public address announcer advised spectators to make sure they had skin protection, head wear and water.
"All are vital necessities," he said.
Aside from the wobble at the finish, Henin kept her cool and improved to 7-0 on grass this year. She won the title at Den Bosch, Netherlands, last week.
Seeded 17th, the Belgian is playing at Wimbledon for the first time since 2007. She retired in 2008 and rejoined the tour in January.
Against Barrois, Henin won 21 points at the net and hit 38 winners. She seeks the only major title she has yet to win.
"That remains a dream for me," she said. "I just see myself as an outsider this year, because I don't know how I'm going to deal at a very high level. So it's very hard to predict what could happen, but I really don't see myself as one of the favorites."
Clijsters committed just 13 unforced errors against Sprem and erased the only three break points she faced. The No. 8-seeded Clijsters, who returned from retirement last year, is playing at Wimbledon for the first time since 2006.
She has reached at least the third round at her past 16 Grand Slam tournaments.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.